Winch



April 4, 11950 R. F. SYMONDS 2,503,177

WINCH Filed June 20, 1946 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR ATTORNEY April 4, 1950 R. F. SYMONDS 2,503,177

' WINCH Filed June 20, 1946 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 7 7 {CPI EDITOR.

April 4, 1950 R. F. SYMONDS 2,503,177

WINCH Filed June 20, 1946 3 Sheets-Sheet 55 IN V EN TOR.

Patented Apr. 4, 1950 WINCH Ralph Frederick Symonds, Marblehead, Mass., assignor to New England Trawler Equipment 00., Chelsea, Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts Application June 20, 1946, Serial No. 678,082

4 Claims.

The present invention comprises a new and improved winch having special advantages when installed on shipboard but not by any means limited to that field.

The typical trawl Winch has been heretofore constructed with its drum shaft bearings mounted on a massive bed frame which is bolted as tightly 'as possible to the deck of the vessel in which it is installed. The hulls of vessels, however, are never rigid enough to prevent them from bein distorted more or less by the seas which act on them, and the distorting strains thus produced in the deck of a trawler are necessarily transmitted to the bed frame of a winch bolted to it, thes parts being practically integral with eachother. Therefore, in order to prevent such strains from reaching the drum shaft bearings and disturbing their alignment with the drum shaft, which would result in excessive and uneven wear and might possibly cause the shaft to bind, the bed frame has been made much heavier and more rigid than would be necessary in a similar winch for use on land.

In the novel winch of my invention the frame construction which carries the drum shaft bearings differs radically from that above described in that it is made of steel plate shaped to provide upright side and end walls having flanges at their lower edges through which the attaching bolts pass. These walls form'an outside shell .1

enclosing the working parts of the winch and are stiffened internally, Where necessary, by suitable braces. The structure is also stiffened by the supports for the drum shaft bearings and the driving gear, which supports are also made from steel plate and shaped to receive and hold the bearings in the required positions. In addition, the structure preferably includes a top part or casing of steel plate secured to the side and end walls and serving as a cover for the parts beneath it, so that the entire winch mechanism is completely enclosed except at the front side of the top part, which is left open to give access to 'the interior at the points where the hand wheels for operating the clutches and brake bands are sorbed at those points, while the stresses which reach the upright walls have to follow longer paths through stiff structural elements and their effect on the shaft bearing supports is substantially dissipated. The result is that the alignment of the bearings is effectively preserved.

The construction lends itself to fabrication by welding operations, with the advantages incident thereto, and makes possible a substantial reduction in weight without sacrifice of rigidity where that is necessary in the Winch.

The integration of the gear case with the enclosing shell contributes to the rigidity of the structure in all planes of stress, and .the construction is such that the opening through the deck for below-deck drives, if employed, is completely sealed by the base of the shell.

The complete enclosure of the working parts by the shell provides full protection from the weather and from heavy seas, and eliminates the need of a special enclosing cover for the worm if a worm drive is used.

Another feature of my invention consists in an improved mounting for the worm driving shaft of th winch together with improved means for lubricating the worm shaft and its cooperating worm gear. As herein shown, the worm shaft is arranged to run in an oil chamber being provided with an oil seal at one or both ends as the case may be. Means are also provided for deflecting oil carried up by the worm gear and directing it so that it shall flow by gravity to the bearings of the main shaft.

Another feature of the invention consists in improved screw mechanism for operating the band brake by which removal of the brake is greatly facilitated compared to structures heretofore known. My improved construction is characterized by a screw shaft having right and left threads of different diameters, the thread on the outer end of the shaft being small enough in diameter to pass freely through the threaded nut for the thread of the larger diameter.

These and other features and advantages of the invention will be best understood and appreciated from the following description of a preferred embodiment thereof, selected for purposes of illustration and shown in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a view of the winch in rear elevation. partly in longitudinal section,

Fig. 2 is a sectional view showing the details of a worm shaft mounting of modified construction,

Fig. 3 is a view in cross section on the line 33 of Fig. 1, and

Fig. 4 is a View in perspective of the complete winch.

The winch has an external shell consisting of sheet metal plates in the order of to in thickness welded together and forming a rectangular base section with end walls and II, a front wall i2 and a rear wall l3. This is supplemented by a top casing 14 which is welded or otherwise secured to the lower section and forms a supplementary part of the external shell. The casing i4 is flanged at its upper forward edge and includes a central set back front wall sec tion l5 which is welded at its lower end to an inturned portion of the front wall l2. Two transverse vertical partitions "5 are welded in place between the front and rear walls of the lower section and to these is secured a rectangular .box casing H which constitutes a support for the drive shaft bearings and .forms with the parti tions l6 an .oil chamber for the shaft.

Diagonal brace bars '55 are welded against the inner face of each end wall l3 and i! and these bars are united at their upper ends to form bearing supports 9. The main longitudinal shaft I8 is journaled in bearing sleeves 23 carried by the end supports 9 and by intermediate bearings in the partitions 1.6. To each partition 56 is welded a center-bearing sleeve carrying a bushing l9 for the shaft, both being provided with oilholes leading to 'the shaft. One of the end bearings is shown in Fig. l in detail and it will be understood that the other end bearing is similar in its construction. The bearing sleev is provided with an inwardly extending threaded portion 2|. The sleeve 23 is normally held in fixed position but .may be displaced endwise when it is desired to reach the :inner parts of the winch, all as explained in my co-pending application Ser. No. I

600.26%, .filedJune 19, 1945. .Ball bearings 22 for th shaft are removably contained Within the bearing sleeve 21!, being held in place by a cap 55.

At about the center of the shell are provided inner partitions 23 and 24, best shown in Fig. 3, disposed parallel ;to and within the front and rear walls of the shell and constituting the front and rear walls for the oil chamber enclosing the drive shaft, To the rear partition '23 is secured albearing collar 23 and to the forward partition 24 is secured a bearing collar 25. The collar '25 carries a bearing sleeve 2? for ball bearings 23 for the worm drive shaft 29. The rear bearing collar 26 carries a bearing sleeve 30 for ball bearings 3| in which the rear end of the worm shaft '29 is journaled. The sleeve 30 is formed as a cap and provides a chamber in which is located a compression spring 32 bearing at its inner end upon the inner ball race of the bearings 3|. At the forward end of th shaft the bearing sleeve '2'? is provided with a removable cap 33 forming a chamber in which is placed a compression spring 34 similar to the spring 32. The worm shaft is enclosed in an oil chamber formed by partitions 2-3. and 25 the casing H and the transverse partitions it, of which only one is shown in Fig. 1.

The spring 32 bears at its outer end against a 7 the vessel. The worm 29 is arranged to mesh with a worm gear 35 fast on the shaft l8 adjacent to the center bearing sleeve 9.

The shaft |8 carries two drums 36 one of which is shown in Fig. l, the other being concealed within the casing. The inner disk of the drum is formed with a brake flange 31 and with this cooperates a'band brake 38 connected at its ends to right and left hand threaded portions -;of a horizontal brake shaft 39 having an operating wheel 40 at its forward end. By tightening the brake band 38 the drum 36 may be held in stationary condition. The brake flange 31 con- :stitutes one member of a friction clutch, the other being a cone member 4| keyed to the drum shaft l8. The drum '36 is movable longitudinally upon .the shaft 18 .andis free to turn when disengaged from the cone member 4| and released by the band brake.

The drum 36 is shifted to and from clutching engagement by mechanism which will now be described. The outer-end .of the drum as shown in Fig. 1 is rotatabl-y connected to .a sleeve 42 which meshes with the stationary threaded extension 21 of the bearing support 20 .and is provided externally with worm teeth 43 meshing with a worm 44 fast to a horizontal .shaft 45 journalled in a bracket 46 which is .bolted .to the end wall I l and operated by a hand wheel 41. When the hand wheel is turned in one direction the drum 36 is moved .bodily toward the right into clutching engagement with the cone member 4|. When it is turned ,in the other direction the drum is moved toward the left and freed from clutching engagement with the member 4|. The cap 56 and the bearings at either end of the shaft maybe removed to permit-displacement of the drum when it is desired to reline the brake drum, all as explained in :my copending application Ser. No. 600,264, filed .June .19, 1945.

The driving worm shaft 29 is enclosed in an oil chamber located above the casing I! es .already explained, and the worm is lubricated by 7 running continuously in .an oil bath. A rod .43

extends horizontally between the partitions 16 above the worm gear .35. A combined scraper and chute 49 .is ,adjustably secured to the rod 48 on each side of the worm gear. .These are .arranged to be set .closelyiadjacen-t :to .theside faces of the worm gear .35 for the purpose of scraping oil from the gear and directing it outwardly to a receptacle 50 which communicates with the oil holes in the bearing support 119 -.and the bushing in which the drum shaft .is iournalled. Accordingly, whenever the worm gear .35 is rotated, oil is continuously scraped from its .faces and directed back to the intermediate bearing .of the drum :shaft.

In Fig. 3 the wormshaft 29 is shown as extending outwardly at both ends from the oil chamber and as having keywaysdn its projecting tends to receivea key for holding .-a gear .or sprocket wheel on that end of the shaft which proves to be most convenient fortdrivi-ngtheshaft in the .particular installation of the winch.

In Fig. 2 the worm shaft :12!) .is shown .as projecting from the .oil chamber .only -at its rear end. At its forward end the shaft is supported by ball bearings |2;8 contained in:a flangedsleeve |2|. The inner ball race is held betweena shoulder |35 on the shaft and the inner end of the barrel of a cap L33 which .is flanged to overlap the flange of the sleeve 12f! and bolted with it to the front bearing support. The cap .|.3.3 completely encloses the end of the shaft 1'29 and so obviates the necessity of the oil seal employed where the shaft emerges from the oil chamber.

At its rear end the shaft I29 is supported by ball bearings 13! having their, inner race held between a shoulder I34 on the shaft and an annular flange on the barrel of a cap 131), corresponding to the cap of Fig. 3. This end of the shaft may be provided with an oil seal like that shown in Fig. 3 but omitted from the showing of Fig. 2.

The band brake 38 is formed in two halves which are bolted together below the brake flange 31 by a bolt 51. The forward section of the brake band is provided at its upper end with a lug carrying a circular nut threaded to receive a section of left hand thread 58 formed on the shaft 39 of substantially the full diameter of the shaft. The rear section of the brake is provided at its upper end with a lug carrying a circular nut of such size as to receive the end'right-hand threaded section at the end of the shaft which is of substantially less outside diameter than the threaded section 59; that is to say, the diameter of the threaded section 5| is such that when it has been disengaged from its nut 60 it may be 1. A winch having in its structure an external shell of sheet metal constructed as a rigid unit including front, back, top and end walls, a longitudinal shaft having bearings supported by the end walls and carrying a driven gear at an intermediate point, a drum on said shaft, and flexible sheet metal flanges projecting from the walls of the shell and providing a non-rigid means for securing the winch to the deck of a vessel.

2. A trawl winch having in its structure a longitudinal drum shaft, a drum mounted thereon, a multiplicity of bearings for the shaft, an external shell made of sheet metal plate comprising two end plates, two side plates and a top plate connected together as a rigid unit forming five sides of a rectangular parallelepiped, transverse partition plates within the said shell connected to the said side plates, means centrally located in the said end plates for supporting the said bearings, a side port located in one of the said side plates opposite to the said drum, and sheet metal flanges securing the said shell to the deck of a vessel passed freely with clearance through the nut 58;. I

The convenience of this construction will be apparent. When both threaded sections are of the same diameter, as heretofore, it has been impossible to pass the right-hand threaded section at the end of the shaft through the left-hand threaded nut into which the intermediate section is threaded. With the present construction, however, the nuts of the brake band sections may be readily engaged and disengaged from their respective threaded sections of the rod 39. A

hanger 82 is adjustably supported from the top which would otherwise be imparted to it. The

drum shaft 18 is extended at both ends through the end walls I0 and II of the shell and are provided with small drums or Wildcats 5! which may be of any convenient design.

In Fig. 1 the rear wall It of the casing is shown as provided with a rope port 64 opposite one of the drums, and a similar port may be provided in the casing opposite the other drum. The rear wall of the casing is also provided with a hand hole opening into the oil chamber, this being normally closed by a cover plate 63.

A rope guard 65 is provided adjacent to the outer flange of each of the drums 36 to prevent the hoisting or towing rope from jumping out of the drum. The guard is formed of sheet steel and is welded to the inner surface of the casing I4. It has upwardly diverging side walls and transverse connecting portion located just above the rim of the flange of the drum.

Having thus disclosed my invention and described in detail an illustrative embodiment thereof, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

and being sufiiciently flexible to bend in conformance with the surface variations of the desk of the vessel caused by stresses and strains of the vessels hull in a seaway.

3. A multiple drum trawl winch having in its structure a longitudinal drum shaft, a multiplicity of drums mounted thereon, a multiplicity of bearings for the shaft, an external shell with sheet metal securing flanges as described in claim 2, the said end and partition plates being welded together, internally located oblique braces for the said end and partition plates, and a multiplicity of side ports located in one of the said side plates opposite to the said drums.

4. A marine winch including in its structure an external shell of sheet metal constructed as a rigid unit having front, back and end walls, the front wall having an inturned flange and a setback section Welded at its lower edge to the flange, a horizontal drum shaft within the shell, bearings for the shaft carried by the shell, brace rods fastened to the end walls of the shell in position supporting the shaft bearings, brake mechanism for the drum shaft including a hand wheel located adjacent to the said set-back section of the front wall, and flexible sheet metal flanges projecting from the walls of the shell and providing nonrigid means for securing the winch to the deck of a vessel.

RALPH FREDERICK SYMONDS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 381,035 Stevens Apr. 10, 1888 449,661 Baxter Apr. '7, 1891 1,357,301 Reaugh Nov. 2, 1920 1,413,287 Myers Apr. 18, 1922 1,850,068 Ballman Mar. 22, 1932 1,906,947 Cunningham May 2, 1933 2,379,858 Banzhaf et a1 July 10, 1945 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 715,449 France Sept. 28, 1930 

